The Marauders' Tale
by Free Quill
Summary: This is a story of the Marauders and their time during and after Hogwarts. The friends were human, but their friendship was legendary.
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I do not own anything Harry Potter

Prologue

A young boy with dark hair that stuck up untidily in the back hopped down the stairs and into the kitchen with the energy that only an 11-year-old boy can possess at 7:30 in the morning. He plopped himself down at the kitchen table where his mother was just placing his breakfast.

"Morning Mum," he greeted as he dug into the plate of scrambled eggs and toast now in front of him as his mother puttered around the kitchen making sure the dishes were washing themselves to her satisfaction.

"Morning hon," she replied, looking up as she finished examining a plate that had just rinsed itself. "Sleep well?"

"Yep, sure did. Hey, where's Dad? I thought he didn't have to work today." The boy inquired.

"He got called in early this morning, for an emergency. He said he'd be back by lunch. But of course I have no idea what he's doing, since he can't tell me anything," his mother replied wearily.

"Oh, that's too bad. Hey, I had the greatest dream last night! Wanna hear it?" he asked his mother.

"Sure," she said as she sat down with a plate of her own.

"Well it started out with these marshmallows, and they were as big as me, and we were all dancing around," the boy said, as he gesticulated wildly. "And then we decided to have a race, but since they don't have legs, they- Look Mum! There's an owl!" the boy interrupted himself. "I'm gonna let him in."

"Is it Achilles?" the mother asked.

"No, it's a different one," the boy said as he let the owl in. "And it's got a note. And it's for me! Yay!" and the boy took the note from the owl. "Here, I'll read it out loud. 'We are pleased to inform you that you have been...'"

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Across the country, a second young boy was getting up as well. While his hair colour was similar to that of the first boy's, this boy's hair was smooth and tamed.

The boy trudged down the stairs into the dining room, where his parents and younger brother were eating breakfast while their ugly houself stood behind the boy's mother, watching. "Morning," the boy said gloomily. His mother narrowed her eyes at him, but didn't say anything, while his father didn't even look up from the paper he was reading. His brother half-smiled at him. The boy sat down and began to eat in silence, not looking at the rest of his family.

As the family was finishing eating, an owl started tapping on the window of the dining room." Well don't just sit there," the boy's mother snapped. "Let it in!"

As the boy let the owl in, his parents watched him, scowling slightly. After the boy removed the envelope from the owl's leg, he looked to see whom it was addressed to. "Well, boy, who's it for?" his mother asked impatiently.

"It's for me!" the boy said, looking happier.

"Well, hurry up and open it. We haven't got all day," his father grunted from behind the paper. "And make sure you read it out loud."

"Fine," the boy said as he pulled the letter out of its envelope. "'We are pleased to inform you that you have been...'"

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

A third boy made his way down the stairs of his house that morning to have breakfast. While he didn't prance like the first boy, he didn't drag his feet like the second boy either. He made his way tiredly to the kitchen, pushing his light brown hair out his eyes with his hand.

"Hello, Mum, Dad," the boy greeted his parents as he sank into a chair.

"Are you alright darling?" his mother asked him as she placed a cup of tea in front of him as he smiled thankfully.

"Yeah, I'm fine, just tired,"

"Well, now it's over for another month," his father pointed out, and the boy perked up slightly.

"Yeah, thank goodness. Oh, look Mum, there's an owl at the window." the boy said, pointing at the owl.

"Well so there is. I'll let it in," his mother said as she opened the window. "Darling, the letter's for you. Do you want me to read it aloud?" she asked her son.

"Yes please Mum," he said, watching her.

"Alright, here goes, 'We are please to inform you that you have been...'"

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

A final boy made his way down the stairs of his house, later than the others had been. He was shorter than the rest, with light brown hair.

"Morning Mum," he said as he found his mother tidying the kitchen while a bowl of oatmeal sat in the middle of it.

"Morning, sleepyhead," she greeted with a smile. "Your father just went to the fire in the living room to talk with a coworker. He should be back any minute. Can you grab the broom for me? It's in the corner, beside the watering can," his mother asked, pointing to where the broom was.

"Sure," the boy replied, handing her the broom just as his father walked back into the room.

"Morning son," his father greeted with a pat on the back.

"Eat your breakfast before it gets cold," the mother scolded her son. "Oh, and an owl came with a letter for you a little while ago. It's beside your oatmeal."

"Okay, thanks Mum," the boy said as he sat down and reached for the letter. "Want to hear it?" He asked his mother.

She stopped her sweeping and looked at him. "Sure, honey read it out loud."

"Okay. 'We are pleased to inform you that you have been...'"

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

And with these letters, four boys who didn't even know each other existed began to walk the path of their destinies. Destinies that would lead them to make the friendship of a lifetime. The kind of friendship where they would gladly die for one another. Or so they thought. This is their tale. The Marauders Tale.

AN: This is my first story, and I would appreciate it if there were no flames. If anyone wants to help me find a better name, that'd be great. The chapters are going to be longer, this one's just a prologue.


	2. Chapter One

Disclaimer: Don't own HP

Chapter One

"Don't worry Mom, I'll be fine," came James Potter's muffled voice, from somewhere in the vicinity of his mother's chest.

"I know sweetie it's just…" his mother sniffed tearfully, "you're my little baby, and this is your first year of Hogwarts, and I'm going to miss you so much!" Mrs. Potter then proceeded to hug her son even tighter, if that was possible.

"Mom…" James whined piteously, looking around to see if anyone was watching. He felt relieved to see that a short, blonde girl was getting the same treatment about ten feet away. "Mom, it's… okay, you can… let go now… can't… breathe," James gasped out as his father chuckled from beside him.

"It's alright dear, you can let go of James now, he has to go, unless he wants to miss his train."

This made Mrs. Potter release James quickly, and start to make shooing motions with her hands. "Hurry up James, we don't want you to miss your train, do we? Now go on, your father will help you with your trunk," his mother called as James and his father started to walk towards the train. "And no pranks! And write home once a week! And do your homework! I love you!"

"I can't make any promises, I will, I'll try, and I love you too," James called over his shoulder as he made his way to the door onto the train with his father.

Just before they reached the doors of the train, Mr. Potter stopped walking and looked at James. "Before you go, I just wanted to tell you how proud I am of you. I know that one day you'll be a great wizard. That is, if you can keep yourself out of trouble long enough to actually learn anything," James's father finished with a grin, knowing that his son's playful streak could sometimes get him into trouble.

"I'll try to be good, but… well… you know how that usually works for me," James told his father, as he gave him a hug goodbye.

James's father smiled fondly at him before saying, "Yeah, I know. Oh, and I'm sure that your mother just forgot to mention this in her list of instructions, but make sure that you have fun while you're there. Hogwarts will be some of the most memorable years of your life. And write home when you get sorted!"

James grinned at his father as he hopped onto the train, and then turned and gave a final wave before starting to wander down the corridor to find someone to sit with. He finally found a compartment with only one other person in it. The small boy looked to be a first year like himself. "Hi," said James, "Can I sit here?" he asked, indicating to one of the empty seats across from the boy.

"Sure," said the boy quietly. And with that, James plopped down and began to introduce himself.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

"Don't worry Mom, I won't tell anybody," Remus promised his mother as she hugged him tightly.

"I know you won't, I was just making sure," his mother told him as she released him. As soon as she did, his father hugged him.

"Don't worry Remus," Mr. Lupin said, "We trust you. Now go on. I'm sure you'll meet some nice friends soon, and we want to hear all about them when you owl us."

Mrs. Lupin hugged Remus one last time before she softly pushed the nervous boy towards the train. "Bye honey, I love you," she told him.

"Bye Mom, I love you too. Love you Dad," Remus whispered before walking onto the train. At the door, he turned towards his parents, who were waving frantically, and he waved before turning to find a compartment. Towards the middle of the train he found an empty one, so he went in and made himself comfortable. A few minutes later a boy with messy black hair and glasses popped his head around the door and asked if he could sit there.

"Sure," he told the boy, and with that the boy came in and sat down.

"Hi, I'm James Potter," the boy introduced himself, sticking out his hand to Remus.

Remus took it, smiling. "I'm Remus Lupin," he said. "So, do you like Quidditch?" And with that the two launched into a long and confusing conversation about their favourite teams and different strategies.

They barely noticed the time passing until an old man came in and asked them if they wanted to buy anything to eat off of the food trolley.

"Sure!" James and Remus replied enthusiastically, jumping up and digging through their pockets for spare change. They then proceeded to spend all their money on sweets and gorge themselves for the next ten minutes.

After they ate everything they changed into their robes, and before they knew it, they were at Hogwarts.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

"Now Sirius, make sure that the damn Sorting Hat puts you into Slytherin. If it doesn't, there will be hell to pay, do you understand me?" Sirius's father threatened.

"Yes father," Sirius said in a monotone, giving his father an evil glare when his back was turned. _Yeah, like I'm going into Slytherin_, Sirius thought, _over my dead body._

'And make sure that you make friends with the right sort," his mother threatened. "None of that Mudblood shit. You could ask Bellatrix, she knows many fine wizards and witches. Now go," she commanded flapping her hands at him.

Sirius turned and trudged onto the train, finding a compartment with a group of giggling girls probably a year older than him. He didn't talk to them at all, just indulged in self-pity.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

"Hurry up Peter!" Mrs. Pettigrew puffed, holding her hat on her head as she rushed towards the train. "We don't want you to miss it!" she cried as the train gave a whistle. They reached the train and threw Peter's trunk onto it as Peter hugged his mother. He jumped onto the train just as it started to move, and waved as hard as he could at his mother, who had tears streaming down her face. "Have fun, and don't forget to write!" she called as the train pulled farther away.

Once the train rounded a corner and he couldn't see his mother anymore, Peter decided to find a compartment to sit in. He went to the first compartment he saw and knocked on the door. It slid open and a boy with blond hair and blue eyes who looked to be roughly the same age glared out. "What do you want?" the boy asked sharply.

"Um, uh, I just wondered if there was room for me in your compartment," Peter stuttered awkwardly, shifting his weight from one foot to the other.

"Hmm…" the boy, said, looking him up and down. "What's your name?"

"Peter Pettigrew," he forced out nervously.

"Pureblood?" the boy asked, still staring at him.

"Yeah…" Peter said, wondering why it mattered.

"Okay come in," the boy said, moving aside to let Peter past before closing the door again. He introduced Peter to the other boys, whose names he promptly forgot. Then the boys restarted their previous conversation. How the Mudbloods were ruining Hogwarts. _Oh cripes._ Peter thought _I've landed myself into the compartment of future Slytherins!_

Peter didn't speak for the rest of the train ride.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Once they reached the train station, all four of the boys filed out of their compartments, along with the other students. They got of the train and found that they were being called over by a man. A very _large_ man.

"Firs' years, this way! Over here!" he shouted over the noise all the students were making. The four boys made their way over to the giant of a man with the rest of the students in their year.

Sirius smirked as he looked around at his fellow classmates. Many of them looked petrified. Especially the short, chubby boy who was standing by the tree.

Peter was terrified. He had never been so nervous in his whole life. He wanted to sag against the tree, but he thought people would look at him oddly. _What if they put me in Slytherin? Merlin, that would be awful!_ Peter thought to himself.

The giant-man cleared his throat at the front of the crowd and then started to speak. "M'name's Rubeus Hagrid, but you all can jus' call me Hagrid. We need to get'cha into these here boats and then across the lake, alrigh'? No more'n four to a boat. Let's go then," and Hagrid marched up to the first boat and settled himself inside, taking up most of the space, as the students followed suit and got into boats.

Remus and James found themselves in a boat with two girls, one with blonde pigtails and the other with a long, dark brown braid. They girls seemed very nervous, and didn't even respond when Remus asked their names. So Remus and James decided to content themselves with a conversation of their own about which house they wanted to be in. Both hoped for either Ravenclaw or Gryffindor, and they wanted to be together.

"As long as we're not in Slytherin," James said, and Remus nodded vehemently.

Peter was in a boat with two boys from his compartment and a short, redheaded girl. "Mudblood," he heard one of the boys mutter to the other.

Sirius was in a boat with two boys and a girl who seemed to be friends, and the three chattered away the whole time, blatantly ignoring Sirius, which was fine with him.

As the boats rounded a corner, everyone caught their first glimpse of Hogwarts. It stood, proud and tall, on the top of a hill. All four of the boys' mouths dropped open in amazement.

"Wow," James breathed.

"You said it," whispered Remus.

"Oh my," muttered Peter.

"Wicked," Sirius sighed.

As they all climbed out of the boats and hurried up the stairs to the front of the school, Hagrid gave a booming knock on the big wooden door.

It opened almost immediately to show a tall woman with glasses standing there. She had on green robes and wore her black hair in a bun. She looked to be very strict, and Peter gulped when he saw her.

"Here are the firs' years Professor McGonagall," Hagrid said.

"Thank you Hagrid, I will now take them," Professor McGonagall replied.

They all filed into the school, following Professor McGonagall. They found themselves in a large entrance hall, and were about to automatically head towards the voices that they could hear behind a large set of doors, but Professor McGonagall led them into a small room off to the side.

"Welcome to Hogwarts," Professor McGonagall said, "Now Before we can start the feast, all of you will need to be sorted into your houses. There are four houses here at Hogwarts. They are Slytherin, Hufflepuff, Gryffindor and Ravenclaw. No one house is better than another. Once sorted, your houses will sort of act as your families. You will eat, sleep and attend classes with your house. While here you can either earn or lose points for your house. At the end of the year, the house with the most points will win the House Cup.

"In a few minutes you will go up in front of the rest of the school to be sorted. I shall return soon to collect you," Professor McGonagall finished before turning and leaving the room, which was completely silent.

The students waited for her to return, making small talk with their neighbours. Sirius let his eyes travel over all the students in the room, and he couldn't help but let his eyes linger on one particular boy. The boy had black, greasy hair that hung to his chin, a hooked nose, sallow skin and a large sneer. _He looks like a nasty piece of work,_ Sirius thought, feeling himself sneer in return.

Professor McGonagall then walked back into the small room. "Alright, It's time," she said, "Get into a line and follow me."

The students followed her back into the entrance hall and through the big double doors into the Great Hall. All the students already in the hall turned to stare at the first years. Professor McGonagall led the students through the house tables to right in front of the teachers' table, so that they were facing the students. Remus stared up at the ceiling, having never seen anything like it before. It didn't even look like there was a ceiling at all; it looked like the room just opened to the skies. The ceiling had thousands of bright stars on it, along with a bright moon. It looked exactly like the sky outside. Remus just stared and stared.

Professor McGonagall carried a small stool to the front, before putting it down and placing an old, torn hat on it.

The rest of the school stared at the hat, so Peter did too. He was so nervous that he couldn't hear anything that was going on. He saw the brim of the hat open and, presumably, the hat started to speak. But the roaring of blood was so loud in Peter's ears that he couldn't hear a word.

After the song had finished Professor McGonagall walked to the front of the Hall, beside the hat, holding a long scroll. "When I call your name, you will come up here, sit on the stool and place the hat on your head. The hat will than proceed to sort you." She said. "Adams, Dylan"

A tall boy with light brown hair walked to the stool and put the hat on. A few seconds later-

"RAVENCLAW!" shouted the hat. The boy took off the hat and walked over to the table that was cheering. The same thing happened twice more as Aron, Lindsay (Hufflepuff) and Bates, Martha (Ravenclaw) were sorted.

"Black, Sirius," Professor McGonagall called. Sirius walked arrogantly to the stool, and sat down on it, thinking, _I _will _tell that damn hat where to sort me, and it sure as hell won't be Slytherin_. He then placed the hat on his head.

"Well," Sirius heard a voice say in his ear. "Another Black. Normally I put any Black into Slytherin right away, but you… I'm not so sure."

"Anything but Slytherin. But me in Hufflepuff for all I care, just not Slytherin," Sirius thought wholeheartedly.

"Ah, I see, we have a rebel on our hands. Well then, I know just the place for you." The hat said. "GRYFFINDOR" it screamed to the room. Sirius, beaming proudly, took off the hat and swaggered over to the Gryffindor table, but not before smirking at his cousins Narcissa and Bellatrix, who were glaring at him from the Slytherin table. Sirius settled himself beside a boy with blonde hair and watched the rest of the sorting.

Remus was starting to get a little nervous. He knew that his name was going to be called soon, and he couldn't help but wonder which house he would end up in. As Lever, Donald, was sorted into Slytherin, Remus prepared himself.

"Lupin, Remus," Professor McGonagall called. Remus walked up to the stool and couldn't help but notice that the teachers seemed more alert when his name was called. _Probably because of my… condition,_ Remus thought as placed the hat on his head.

"Well, let me see here," the voice said in his ear. "Yes, you definitely have brains, I can see that, but you also have bravery. Oh yes, bravery and strength. You have to, with what you go through every month. Yes, I know just where to put you. GRYFFINDOR!" the hat cried.

Remus let out a sigh of relief as he heard this, and took off the hat to walk towards the Gryffindor table. He sat down across from another first year, a boy with black hair that fell into his grey eyes, and beside a third first year, this one a girl, with long red hair and pretty green eyes. Remus smiled at them before continuing to watch the sorting; silently praying that James was also sorted into Gryffindor.

Peter was still exceptionally nervous, but now he could at least hear what was going on. It was a good thing too, because right at that moment, Professor McGonagall called. "Pettigrew, Peter,"

Peter shakily made his way to the stool, where he sat down and placed the hat on his head. "Hmm…" said a little voice in his ear. "Difficult, very difficult. It could be any house but Ravenclaw. Hmm, no, not Hufflepuff, either. Well, you have loyalty, and a stubbornness that sometimes won't quit. Well then, I'll have to say… GRYFFINDOR" the hat exclaimed.

Peter was so relieved that it was over that he almost ran to the Gryffindor table. He sat down in an empty seat beside a boy with black hair and diagonal from a boy with light brown hair and crystal blue eyes. Peter was too tired to even hear the rest of the sorting.

James was fairly confident while he waited for his name to be called. He knew that he would either be in Ravenclaw or Gryffindor, but he hoped it was Gryffindor so that he could be with Remus. Right after a scared boy nearly ran to the Gryffindor table, Professor McGonagall called, "Potter, James."

_This is it,_ James thought, _the moment of truth._ He put the hat on his head. "This is an easy one," the hat said. "GRYFFINDOR!" James's heart leapt, and he sauntered down to the table, taking a seat next to Remus and grinning at him.

The sorting finished as Remus and James were talking, and Headmaster Dumbledore got to his feet. "Welcome," he said, "to another year at Hogwarts. I have a few words to say, but I feel we should all eat first and talk later. And so, with that, let the feast begin!"

With that, all the empty plates filled with food, and again the four boys jaws dropped. But they quickly got over their amazement with the realization that they were famished. And so, the boys quickly dug in. The table was silent for a while, as everybody was too famished to talk, but eventually, conversations broke out. Peter turned to the boy sitting next to him, the one with the black hair hanging in his eyes, and said, "Hi, I'm Peter," but the boy ignored him, continuing to eat. So Peter turned to the boy across from him, who had messy black hair, glasses and hazel eyes, and repeated himself. "Hi, I'm Peter,"

The boy looked up at him. "Oh, hi, I'm James, nice to meet you. And this is-"

"I'm Remus," Remus butted in. "Pleased to meet you."

"Yeah, you too," Peter responded.

"So, do you know anybody here?" Remus asked him.

"No, no one," Peter said. "But I guess you two know each other," Peter commented as Remus flicked a pea into James's face.

"Nah, never seen him before in my life," James said easily. "He's just a boy who likes to flick peas into unsuspecting boys faces."

"Yeah, right, innocent boy my wand," Remus muttered under his breath. "D'you think these mashed potatoes got down my shirt on their own?" he asked. James put on an innocent face.

"No, but seriously, we only met on the train here," James said. "Before that, we didn't know anybody either."

"Oh. Okay then," Peter said as he finished eating.

At that time the Headmaster stood up from his seat. "I have just a few short announcements, and then you can all trot off to bed. First years- along with a few others- should note that the Forbidden Forest is strictly that- forbidden. And Mr. Filch would like me to remind you that no magic is to be used in the halls between classes. Quidditch tryouts are to be held two weeks from now. Anyone interested should get in touch with Madam Tuffy. And that is everything, so could you all please make your way to your dormitories. First years, your house prefect will show you where to go. "

The first year Gryffindors followed a girl with a round, smiling face named Alice up through the twisting halls of Hogwarts. They stopped in front of a portrait of a very fat woman in a pink dress. "Password?" the fat lady asked.

"Draconum vincere," Alice said. At these words the portrait opened to reveal a round hole in the wall. Alice climbed through it and the rest of the Gryffindors followed suit. Inside was a round room with a fireplace on one wall and lots of comfy looking armchairs and sofas, with tables scattered around. The colours were all reds and gold. Alice directed the girls up one staircase and the boys up another. Once the four boys walked into the room marked _First Year Boys_, they all picked out their beds. Sirius was first, closest to the door, then James, then Remus, and Peter finished the circle by ending up beside Sirius.

James realized that he didn't know one of these boys, so he decided to introduce himself, as well as his new friends. "Hi, I'm James, and this is Remus and Peter," James said, indicating who was who.

"Sirius," he replied a little coolly, nodding his head at them.

By this time, all four of them were exhausted beyond belief, and they all fell into their beds, sleepily mumbling goodnight to each other.

Within five minutes the sounds of four boys snoring echoed throughout the room.

AN Please review!


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